Ten Things to LOVE in 2012! (New Foods, Finds & MORE!)

It's 2012! Hope you got your fill of champagne and holiday leftovers this weekend, because it's time to return to the real world of everyday eating. Get excited, because here are TEN GREAT THINGS that are rolling out in the New Year...

Dulce de Leche Cheerios

They're real; we've tasted them, and they'll be hitting shelves this month. People who want their breakfast to taste like dessert will be happy about these. We've gotta come up with a new marshmallow-square recipe that uses these caramel-flavored O's, but until then, eating them from a cereal bowl will do. A 3/4-cup serving has 100 calories, 1.5g fat, 135mg sodium, 22g carbs, 2g fiber, 6g sugars, and 2g protein (PointsPlus® value 3*). Also debuting this year? Multi Grain Cheerios Peanut Butter cereal!

Weight Watchers Barcode Scanner App

This year when you do your grocery shopping, get futuristic and scan your barcodes before you buy. This new app from the double W allows you to instantly find PointsPlus® values for thousands of products with just a click of your trusty smartphone. The app is available for both Android and iPhone/iPad/iPod touch platforms -- check it out and get scanning. Heads up: This app is free but requires a subscription to Weight Watchers Online or Weight Watchers eTools.

La Tortilla Factory Smart & Delicious Mini Soft Wraps

Let your snacks take a new form this year... WRAP 'EM. These yummy, flat little items -- from the makers of our FAVORITE large high-fiber tortillas -- are great for making quickie quesadillas with light cheeses and for spreading with low-fat hummus. They're also nice for fajitas and soft tacos. The five-variety lineup includes Three Seed, Fiesta, Multi-Bran, White Whole Wheat, and Honey Oat -- each wrap has 50 calories, 1.5 - 2g fat, 160 - 180mg sodium, 9 - 10g carbs, 4 - 6g fiber, 0 - 1g sugars, and 2 - 4g protein (PointsPlus® value 1*). Look for these guys on store shelves in the coming months.

Starbucks Blonde Roast

They've been teasing us with this for months, and now it's finally here. If you find Starbucks' other coffees too strong, you may want to swing by and try this line of lighter-bodied joe. New varieties include Willow Blend (in regular and decaf) and Veranda Blend (also available in VIA Ready Brew packets). There's even a K-Cup option! Blonde Roast coffees will be appearing in Starbucks locations and grocery stores this month -- keep a lookout!

Vitalicious Fudgy Chocolate Mini VitaCakes

A new product from Vitalicious? Yup! These delicious little chocolate cakes are made from a brand-new rich 'n super-fudgy recipe. Each cake has (are you sitting down?) only 50 calories, 1g fat, 65mg sodium, 14g carbs, 6g fiber, 6g sugars, and 2g protein (PointsPlus® value 1*). Do you need to take a moment to process this? We understand. Stop, fan yourself, and think about a 2012 spent nibbling 50-calorie snack cakes. We sent out an extra-special Side Dish email last month featuring a preview sale of the new treats (reason #222 why you should subscribe to the free daily emails), and they'll officially become available TOMORROW. This year's already looking pretty sweet...

Crystal Light Energy Powdered Drink Mix

If you like a little boost along with your sugar-free beverage, this caffeine-enhanced product is for you. We've been fans of the Wild Strawberry for a while (it's SO good), but (until now) the Grape and Peach Mango flavors have only been available at Walmart. Well, the formerly elusive flavors will be sold in most markets starting this month. And a brand-new flavor is on the way... Citrus! Each 1/2-packet serving (makes 8 oz.) has only 5 calories, so grab a box and mix it up. P.S. Word is that Crystal Light's limited-edition Mocktails will be added to the permanent lineup this year. Yay!

Arnold/Oroweat Pocket Thins Flatbread

If you wished that the New Year would bring fluffy low-calorie pita breads into your life, your dreams have come true. These things come in 8 Grain (which is nice) and Italian Herb (which is AMAZINGLY delicious and disappeared from the HG HQ in record time). Each pocket has 100 calories, 1.5g fat, 200mg sodium, 20 - 21g carbs, 5g fiber, 1 - 2g sugars, and 4 - 5g protein (PointsPlus® value 3*). These pocket breads have been available in select states for a bit, but this year they're going nationwide!

New Hungry Girl Episodes: "Chinese Food" and "Movie Night"

We don't know about you, but we found watching Hungry Girl on Food Network (and Cooking Channel) to be a highlight of 2011. And two brand-new episodes are coming your way this month -- this Sunday's episode is for the movie lovers (covering everything from snacks at the theater to homemade goodies in your living room), and the January 15th episode is all about guilt-free Chinese food (how to order it and easy ways to re-create your favorites). Click here for a preview of "Movie Night!" Then set those DVRs or tune in on Sunday mornings at 10am/9c on Food Network. P.S. The "Movie Night" episode has a special guest!

Snapz Crisps

Crunchy all-natural snack foods made from fruits and veggies make us smile... and this latest smile-inducer came all the way from the UK! These crisps come in several varieties. We've seen the Crunchy Carrot Crisps with Paprika, the Crunchy Red Beet Crisps, and the Crunchy Premium Apple Crisps with Strawberry. WOW. Each of those single-serving packages (0.7 oz.) has 60 - 70 calories, 0g fat, 0mg sodium, 10 - 15g carbs, 3 - 5g fiber, 7 - 14g sugars, and 0g protein (PointsPlus® value 1*). You can currently find the crisps in select Target locations and Subway restaurants, with many more retailers to come this year -- click for store info.

Tabatchnick Soup Singles

OK, these aren't so much "new" as "new to us," but we just found out they exist, so YIPPEE! We've always had love for Tabatchnick's pouch-bound freezer-aisle soup concoctions. These, however, are individual servings in their own bowls, ready to heat 'n eat. Most of the soups in this line (the exception being the higher-calorie Southwest Bean) have 90 - 270 calories, 0.5 - 5g fat, 530 - 720mg sodium, 16 - 50g carbs, <1 - 20g fiber, 1 - 14g sugars, and 3 - 19g protein (PointsPlus® value 2 - 7*) per bowl. Barley & Mushroom, we've got our hungry eyes on you...

Pass this email to your pals -- click "Send to a Friend" and make sure they start off the year in well-informed fashion.

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Happy January 2nd -- day two of National Soup Month! We've got two incredible new recipes coming your way in Thursday's email. But in the meantime, click here!

We may have received free samples of food, which in no way influences whether these products are reviewed favorably, unfavorably, mentioned with indifference, or mentioned at all. Click for more about our editorial and advertising policies.

*The PointsPlus® values for these products and/or recipes were calculated by Hungry Girl and are not an endorsement or approval of the product, recipe or its manufacturer or developer by Weight Watchers International, Inc., the owner of the PointsPlus® registered trademark.